Best interconnects & speaker cable? I don't get it

Thanks, Rpfef, for sharing this. It is in step with suspicions that I have gradually developed on my own over my 50+ years of involvement in this hobby. A few years ago I tried a less comprehensive listening test which was inspired by a friend who is an avid and dedicated hobbyist. He claimed that I would easily be able to tell the difference between my $400 speaker wires and his "high end" $3000 + cables.

We used his system because it was easy to walk around and, while listening to my music selections, he switched wires between the speakers. We started with my wires and switched to his and my first impression was that, although subtle, his seemed to be a bit warmer, a quality that I prefer. We then went to blind testing and, not having the psychological influence and expectation that these more esoteric wires should be better, I could not tell the difference; we switched places and the results were the same.

We didn't try comparing interconnects but I suspect the results would be similar. Granted, we did not use the worst or best wires available if price is a significant factor in this evaluation, and, maybe if we had compared something like tiny gauge telephone wire to even my wires, some difference could be heard and I expect that this would be the case.

In the end I don't want to give the impression that I believe, as I've read here on Audiogon posts by others, that speaker wire should be considered nothing more than an electrical conduit. I'm simply saying that what I believe to be quite subtle differences between wires of various size, composition and construction, is beyond my ability to discern and, as I said previously and commentated on by Jmcgrogan2, this "deficiency" in my ability to do so makes my choices much less expensive.

That being said, although I'm pretty happy with my system overall, I will probably not completely abandon the quest. I just won't be obsessed by it.

When I started this thread I fully expected it to be a subject with a wide range of opinions. It seems, though, that most listeners agree that interconnect and speaker wire choice make a noticeable difference but, and this is what amazes me, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of even general agreement about a wire/cable that is, at least, a good starting point in this quest.

My experience with speaker wire began about 55 yrs ago with a self built Heathkit monaural amp, a cheap turntable and an also self built "Sweet 16" speaker enclosure. At that time the effect that speaker cable had in a system never even crossed my mind, nor, to my memory, was it even a subject of discussion in the magazines of that period.

I think that maybe what's happened is that, in general, improvements in all components have progressed over the years to the extent that many feel that, within our respective budgets, we have put together systems that we assumed are the best for the money and that we should be happy with. After having dedicated a significant portion of our budget to these more expensive components, then, we turn our attention to other parts of the system to "fine tune" it to our tastes. It seems that this tuning boils down mostly to IC's and cables.

Here's what bothers me about that; in following a signal from source to speaker there are so many significant interactions between various components in the chain, including conductors, that choosing to concentrate on only one of these at a time one would have to assume that each of the other by itself or working together with other components is as good as it can be. That can't be the case so it's like exceeding the allowable number of significant digits in the outcome of a mathematical equation.

One of the responders asked if anyone has calculated what the number of permutations and combinations was for the various component choices in a system. This, of course, would only be mathematically possible if one knew exactly what was available to put into a given system and that is unknowable but probably in the billions.

I'm rambling but my point is that music listening is so subjective in the first place that there can't be one or even several wire choices that are superior to all others. This is especially true for someone like me who, apparently, does not have a sufficiently trained ear to recognize subtle differences. As an example, I have a Sony jukebox and a Shanling single CD player, both playing through the same Rogue Audio amp, and there are certain music selections that I actually like better if played on the jukebox.

As I said before, these comments are not meant to argue that speaker wire choice is a frivolous quest; it's just that the process has so many factors to consider and so complicated for me that I'm accepting the assumption that the wires that I use are not the most or even an important factor in my system.

I agree with you, Nonoise. Regardless of sometimes vastly differing opinions, most arguments are well taken and, to use your description, consistently civil. It's refreshing and provides some comfort for those of us who may be somewhat less knowledgeable in certain aspects of the hobby, to participate in these discussions.

Getting back to the topic, the one point I'm taking away from this discussion is that, if I continue this quest, sooner or later I'll possibly have honed my listening skills enough to identify differences in speaker wire and how that ability will help me tune my system. Although I'm quite happy with my system the way it is and it possibly is the best I can expect with my combined components, I won't let that stand in my way of chasing the ghost.